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Blood testing is necessary to be able to determine the RBC, WBC and platelet of a person. A Blood Testing is a laboratory analysis done in a certain place like a room or a centre where in various kinds of blood testing is being performed. A Blood Testing is a laboratory analysis done in a certain place like a room or a centre where in various kinds of blood testing is being performed. Aside from this, the facilities are a little bigger than a regular room. Blood testing are usually done to be able to know the physiological and biochemical composition as well as to determine if there is the presence of a disease and mineral content. Other uses this to know a drug’s effectiveness, and organ function. The process of obtaining blood from a patient is done by extracting blood from the veins using a syringe or via finger prick. Samples of blood can also be extracted from a patient either thru an IV or via the patient’s internal vein or artery. Once blood is taken from a patient via his or her internal vein, this would mean that it is a more serious condition because the kind of blood taken would be the one going to different parts of the body and to the heart. If you notice, some blood samples are taken from the elbow. A tourniquet is then tied all around the arm’s upper portion so that the vein is visible enough to be injected for extraction. Afterwards, the tourniquet is loosened until extraction is done. Hence, make sure the portion of the skin is cleaned before and after the extraction. This is to avoid infections and contamination of the blood on the part where blood will be extracted or was extracted from. After the extraction, press a cotton ball with alcohol on the portion of the skin for one to two minutes and then seal it with plaster. Just in case the patient’s blood was taken from the artery, it is usually being extracted from the wrist. This is more painful as compared to extracting blood from an IV because there are a lot of nerves around the arterial wall. Thus, after this procedure, don’t forget to press the cotton ball with an alcohol around the area in order to prevent further bleeding. Hold this for five minutes. There are some people who are sensitive to seeing blood, especially if it is their blood. As a tip, in case a patient is like this is spotted, ask them to lie down on a bed before doing the procedure. Make sure you know what to do in case the patient faints. Ask for assistance, if necessary. Why is it necessary to examine our blood? Our blood contains elements called plasma (fluid) and cells. Cells have three kinds; these are the WBC or what we call white blood cells, RBC or red blood cells and the platelets. To be able to gain knowledge about a person’s well being, especially disease, the blood is the best source for this information. Thus, this is why medical personnel will get samples of blood from the patient for some testing, as per the doctor’s request. The medical personnel will then measure the volume of the cells as well as the blood smear. Blood smear can be defined as the film of a blood. This blood smear is will be placed onto a slide and will be viewed and examined using a microscope. Below is some of the blood testing components which medical personnel observe through a microscope, listed down and interpreted by the physician: 1. Red blood cells- red blood cells (RCB) contain haemoglobin. This haemoglobin carries oxygen to all parts of the body. • MCV or Mean Corpuscular Volume test – This is a type of blood test that measures the actual size of your body’s red blood cells. Generally, if a patient experiences dizziness, the person is thought to be suffering anaemia. This would mean that the person’s haemoglobin level is below normal content. It is noted that the actual size of the red blood cells would depend on the kind of anaemia the person has. • Hematocrit - measures the sum volume of red blood cells which was extracted from the blood. A person with anaemia usually has low hematocrit volume. A high volume of hematocrit may occur if a patient is dehydrated. Example, if the patient is having diarrhoea or dehydration due to surgery. Take note, if the red blood cells are pale in colour, it may be a sign of iron deficiency. In case your physician notices that your blood cells are irregular in shape, it may be sickle cell type of anaemia. Lastly, medical personnel also use blood testing as a way to find out if the patient has parasites or malaria. Thus, there is one blood testing type which is called the bacterial test, which is for food poisoning cases. 2. White blood cells (WBC) Medical personnel like doctors count not only the red blood cells but the white blood cell as well. This process is called differential white blood cells count. If the count of white blood cells is higher than the red ones, this is an indication of bacterial infection. Thus, it is also commonly observed that if a person has a high number of white blood cells, it may be a sign of cancer or malaria. A patient experiencing a so-called auto immune deficiency would pertain to having a low volume of white blood cells. Immunity helps the body fight certain kinds of diseases; therefore, having a deficiency in this immunity would make a person prone to diseases easily. Aside from this, persons with weak immunity are treated and medicated with medicines that will boost the immune system of the body. Some of the recognized Blood Testing Centres are as follows: • AUSTRALIA Royal North Shore Hospital Laboratory & Community Genetics Level 5, Main Block St. Leonards, NSW 2065 (011) 61 29 926-8899 • CANADA Alberta Children's Hospital 1820 Richmond Rd. SW Biochem Genetics Laboratory Room B-307 Calgary, Alberta T2T 5C7 (403) 943-7379 Children’s & Women’s Health Centre of BC 4480 Oak Street, Rm 2F22 Biochemistry Disease Laboratory Department of Pathology Vancouver, British Columbia V6H 3V4 (604) 875-7436 Health Sciences Centre 820 Sherbrook Street Room MS551 Winnipeg, Manitoba R3A 1R9 (204) 787-4530 Hospital for Sick Children 555 University Avenue, Rm 3636 Genetic Metabolic Lab Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X8 (416) 831-6946 Montreal Children’s Hospital 2300 Tupper St. Rm A-717 Biochemical Genetics Laboratory Montreal, Quebec H3H 1P3 (514) 412-4400 extension 22071 Saint Justine Hospital Room 7711, 7th Floor, Block 7 3715 Cote STE Catherine Montreal, Quebec H3T 1C5 (514) 345-4931 x 3273 University of Alberta Hospital Department of Lab Medicine & Pathology Hereditary Diseases Section Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2B7 (780) 407-8820 • ISRAEL Chaim Sheba Medical Centre Gemetic Institute Tel Hashomer Ramal Gan, 52621 (011) 97 23 530-3961 • UNITED KINGDOM Guy's Hospital Genetics Centre 5th Floor, Guy's Tower St. Thomas Street London, SE1 9RT (011) 44 207 188-2592 US Blood Testing Centres Lifesouth Community Blood Centre 205 Marengo St., Florence Alabama Manatee Community Blood Centre 216 Manatee Ave., Bradenton Florida Coffee Memorial Blood Centre 1915 S. Coulter St. Arlington, Texas Carter Bloodcare 2205 Highway 121 Bedford, Texas Virginia Blood Service 2201 Westwood Ave., Richmond, Virginia New York Blood Centre 310 E 67th St. New York, New York UCSF Medical Centre 505 Parnassus Ave., San Francisco, California Sierra Foothills-Blood Source 11960 Heritage Oak P1 #2 Auburn, California American Red Cross 2025 E St. NW Washington, DC University of Southern California 620 W 30th St., 621 LA, California
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